Wash your hands

• Before and after working with any biohazard
• After removing gloves, laboratory coat, and other contaminated protective clothing
• Before eating, drinking, smoking, or applying cosmetics
• Before leaving the laboratory area
• Do not touch your face when handling biological material
• Never eat, drink, smoke, or apply cosmetics in the work area

Clothing guidelines

• Always wear appropriate lab clothes and gloves when working with biological agents
• Wear gloves over gown cuffs
• Remove gloves by peeling them from inside
• (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dyLEd9cng5U)
• Never wear contact lenses when dealing with infectious agents
• Do not wear potentially contaminated clothing outside the laboratory area
• Additional appropriate protective clothing should be selected and worn based upon exposure anticipated

Handling liquid infectious materials

• Use mechanical pipetting device (e.g. pipette aid, pipetteman or bulb)
• Minimize aerosol generation. Decanting culture supernatants, opening of culture and streaking of plates should only be done in safety cabinets or in a circular area around a burner of 0.5 meter radius . Decanting/Transferring of cultures in common equipment rooms outside of safety cabinets is forbidden.
• Add disinfectant to water baths for infectious substances
• Use only closed tubes for centrifuging procedures. Inspet the tubes before use.
• Use secondary leak-proof containers when transporting samples, cultures, inoculated petri dishes, and other containers of biohazardous materials within the institute.
• Avoid using syringes and needles whenever possible. Special care has to be taken when usage of needles is not avoidable:
  • Use a needle-locking or disposable needle unit.
  • Take care not to stick yourself with a used needle.
  • Place used syringes into a pan of disinfectant without removing the needles.
  • Do not place used syringes in pans containing pipettes or other glassward that require sorting.
  • Do not recap used needles.
  • Dispose of needles in an approved sharps container.

Risk groups

Microorganisms are classified into four Risk Groups, and biological laboratories are classified into four corresponding Safety Levels. Requirements of handling each Risk Group are illustrated below.